Karma Squared
by JBowl
Summary: Sequel to Karma, which should be read first. Jennifer becomes Abby's intern one year after her father died. Am striving to post a chapter a week. Please R&R. Updated with Chapter 6
1. Chapter 1

**N.C.I.S.: Karma Squared**

Chapter 1

Having just finished a case, and an enjoyable weekend, they were all trying to finish the paperwork that always accompanied their cases.

Gibbs' phone rang. He looked at it and sighed…the caller ID said "Vance."

"Yea." He answered, then listened for a few seconds. "I'll be right up."

Without another word, he headed up the stairs to Vance's office.

"Uh oh." Ziva said as she watched him go. "It's never a good thing when the Director calls him up first thing on Monday morning."

"Cancel your plans, tonight." DiNozzo said, then looked at McGee. "At least, for those of us _with_ plans."

When he walked in, Vance was sitting at his desk and handed him three folders.

"What's this?" Gibbs asked.

"Your interns." Vance said. "I figured you might be especially interested in the one on top."

Gibbs looked at the name and smiled as he left the office.

"What's this?" McGee asked as Gibbs put the folders on his desk.

"Interns." Gibbs replied.

"Ugh. Let's hope we don't get a repeat of last year." Ziva said, thinking of Michael Thomas.

"I don't know." DiNozzo replied. "Abby made out pretty good."

McGee picked up the top folder and opened it.

"Uh, Boss?" He said.

"I know." Gibbs replied. "Only had to make one call."

"Does Abby know?" McGee asked.

"Not unless _you_ told her." Gibbs said. "Personally, I'd like to see her reaction to the surprise."

McGee only laughed.

"What's going on?" DiNozzo asked.

"She said she would be back." McGee said.

Ziva stared at him for a few seconds before the answer dawned on her. "You don't mean…?" She finally said.

"Miss Jennifer Graham." McGee said. "Specializing in forensics. Straight A student, too."

Abby came up on her way to lunch and, seeing the files on McGee's desk, tried to grab them, but McGee put his hand on them.

"Do you mind?" McGee asked.

"Not at all." Abby said as she tried to read the names on the folders, which became impossible when McGee opened a drawer and placed them in it.

"What would you do if I started grabbing things on _your_ desk?" He asked.

"Break your fingers?" Tony offered.

"Throw you out of my lab." Abby replied, giving Tony an amused look. "Are those the intern files?"

"They are." He said. "They will be here after lunch."

Abby gave him a look that could melt ice.

"Understand _this_, McGee…if I don't get who I'm expecting," she scolded, "I will cross your name off my Christmas card list."

"And just who are you expecting?" He asked innocently.

"The daughter of the best intern I ever had." She replied.

McGee gave Ziva an accusatory stare.

"Don't look at _me_, I didn't tell her." Ziva promised.

"Do you really think she would be in town all this time and not call me?" Abby asked. "We have lunch twice a week."

McGee looked at the three college students standing at his desk.

"Brian Willis," The investigative major was just over six feet tall, with red hair and an athletic build.

"Steven Grice," The medical major was about five-nine, with brown hair and a medium build.

"And Jennifer Graham." McGee said. "Welcome to N.C.I.S. Why do the three of you want to be here?"

"To make a difference." Brian and Steven replied…Jennifer just shrugged.

McGee looked at her and nodded.

"Very good." He told them. He was getting good at keeping a straight face over their answer…it was always the same. "Brian, your place of duty for the next two weeks will be this desk." McGee pointed at the small desk next to his. "Steven, you will be in the Medical Examiner's Lab with Doctor Mallard…Jennifer, Abby's lab."

They all just nodded and stared at him.

"What are you waiting for?" McGee asked, waving them off. "Go."

Steven just stared at him, about to ask where the lab was, when Jennifer grabbed his arm and motioned for him to follow her to the elevator.

"Graham." Gibbs called. When she turned back, he motioned for her to return to his desk, then looked at Brian.

"Come on, Willis." McGee said as he stood. "I'll show you where the break room is."

"How are you doing?" Gibbs asked Jennifer after they had left.

"Better than the last time I stood here." She replied with a smile.

"How's your mother?" He asked.

She thought for a few seconds before replying.

"Facing her demons." She finally said. "Getting help. When we left here, we had a…discussion…about a tombstone. Two weeks before my 18th birthday, she took me to the courthouse and signed for me to legally change my name back…I think she'll be alright."

"Nice birthday present." Ziva said.

"It was." Jennifer nodded. "Along with a pink Mustang GT convertible."

Ziva's eyes went wide.

"That's…a nice gift, too." She said after a few seconds.

"412?" Tony asked, referring to the GT's horsepower.

"Shelby." Jennifer replied. The Shelby being a special, limited edition.

"550." Tony said in complete awe. "5.4 Liter, supercharged V8. I get chills thinking about it."

"You staying at the dorm?" Gibbs asked.

"No." She shook her head. "I'm renting his apartment."

"You can afford that?" Gibbs asked. "I mean…I know the fund was given to your mother."

"He was a Silver Star recipient," she replied, "which means Virginia pays for my college. And he had his educational benefits transferred to me," she smiled, "_and_, as long as I'm a full time student, I get a percentage of his retirement pay. Add it all up, and I get a nice monthly check."

"Alright." Gibbs said. "If you need anything, let me know. Now, get your tail down to Abby…she gets upset when her intern is late."

"Yes sir." She smiled, then turned to head to the elevator.

"Are you really a black belt in Karate?" Tony asked.

"Are you challenging me?" She smiled.

Tony's eyed went wide and he shook his head, making Jennifer and Ziva laugh.

"Silver Star?" Ziva asked after the elevator doors closed.

"Fourth highest medal there is." Gibbs replied. "Third highest for Valor in combat."

When Abby saw her enter the lab, she ran over and hugged her.

"Welcome back." She greeted.

"Thanks." Jennifer replied as she looked around. "Though, to be honest, I wasn't sure if I could do it."

"The last time you were here _was_ pretty depressing." Abby sympathized. "I still get days where I open the door, expecting him to greet me."

Jennifer just smiled.

"But let's not talk about bad stuff." Abby said as she closed her eyes and appeared to do a short meditation. "It's important to focus on good things to keep the universe in balance."

Jennifer just watched her and smiled.

"OK." Abby finally said. "I will give you the standard brief. Our hours are from eight-thirty to five…but that is flexible depending on a case, we might have to come in early or work late."

Jennifer just nodded.

"Your desk is over there." Abby pointed. "The lock for the drawer used to be broken, but it was fixed…actually, "fixed" is misleading, it was _replaced_ after the explosion."

"You did an awesome job." Jennifer complimented. "It looks almost exactly the same as before."

"Almost?" Abby looked around with a nervous look on her face. "What's different?"

"Nothing that I can remember." Jennifer laughed. "But I had a lot on my mind during my only visit here."

"Happy thoughts." Abby reminded, and closed her eyes for a few seconds to take some deep breaths. "Do you have any questions of me?"

"None that I can think of right off hand." Jennifer told her. "I'm just _really_ looking forward to this."

"That makes two of us." Abby laughed. "Has Brian asked you out yet?"

"_No_." Jennifer said. "He's actually upstairs now…another intern."

"No _way_." Abby laughed. "You think he did it so he could be here with you?"

"Beats me." Jennifer laughed. "He hardly talks to me."

Late that afternoon, Gibbs' cell phone rang. When he looked at the caller ID, he smiled and turned away.

Try as they might, they couldn't hear what he was saying.

"I'll be right there." He finally said, then hung up, straightened his desk up, and left without saying another word.

They watched him go, but knew better than to ask who had called.

After Gibbs left, Brian approached Tony's desk.

"I get the impression he doesn't like me." He said.

"He doesn't." Tony replied.

"But don't take it personally." Ziva tried to soften the blow. "He doesn't like _anybody_."

"I also get the impression that you guys know Jennifer." He said.

"We've met." Tony replied, eyeing him suspiciously.

"What's she like?" Brian asked. "I mean…she's pretty hot…what's she interested in?"

Tony looked over at Ziva, who was barely able to contain her laughter.

"Well, let's see." Tony began. "First, you should know about her old man. Decorated combat veteran. Karate instructor." He turned to McGee. "What level did you say he was?"

"Third degree black belt." McGee answered without looking up.

"Third _degree_ black belt." Tony repeated. "Which is higher than just a _regular_ old black belt. And I know for a _fact_ that he killed two people with his bare hands in less than five seconds."

"One person." McGee interrupted. When Tony looked at him, he clarified. "He killed one person with his bare hands, then took that person's gun and shot the other one."

"That's _right_." Tony agreed. "I had forgotten about him being an expert marksman."

"But he _did_ do it all in less than five seconds." McGee added, without looking away from his computer.

Tony looked at Brian and shrugged.

"Anything else about her you want to know?" He asked.

"No." Brian, who was wide eyed with shock, answered. "Would you excuse me, please?" He asked and headed to the restroom.

"I can't believe you just chock-blocked him." Ziva laughed.

"If you're implying what I think you're implying," Tony looked hurt, "that is done by driving the female away."

"Then what do you call it?" Ziva asked.

"Eliminating the competition." McGee answered.

"What?!" Ziva practically screamed. "You wouldn't _dare_."

"Absolutely _not_." Tony claimed. "I was just having some fun with our intern." He turned to McGee. "Is he taking any chemistry classes?"

"That's what I'm checking." McGee replied. "Nothing out of the ordinary so far."

Tony looked at Ziva, who was giving him a skeptical look.

"There is only room for _one_ female ninja in my life." He told her. "And that position is already filled…very nicely, I might add."

She just narrowed her eyes and continued staring.

To be continued

6


	2. Chapter 2

**N.C.I.S.: Karma Squared**

Chapter 2

The next morning, Ziva exited the elevator sipping her coffee…to find Jennifer sitting on the floor by the window, doing something on her iPad.

She stopped dead in her tracks and stared.

"Good morning." Jennifer greeted, smiling as she stood.

"Good morning." Ziva replied, feeling an incredible sense of déjà-vu. "You're here early."

"Couldn't sleep." Jennifer told her. "Figured I might as well come in."

Ziva just nodded.

"Although Abby gave me a key to the lab," Jennifer continued, "I...don't think I can be in it alone. At least…not yet."

Ziva nodded understanding.

"The floor _can't_ be comfortable." Ziva said and pointed to Tony's desk. "Have a seat."

"Thank you." Jennifer replied as she grabbed her bag and set it next to the desk, then sat down. "I didn't know how anyone would feel about it."

"_He_ won't mind." Ziva laughed. "Just don't sit in Gibbs' chair." She paused for a few seconds to consider it. "Although…if _anybody_ could get away with it, I bet _you_ could."

"No, thank you." Jennifer laughed. "That is one bet I _won't_ take."

Ziva laughed and sat down at her own desk.

"Please forgive me if I'm breaking protocol," Jennifer said, "but…are you busy this Saturday?"

"I currently have no plans." Ziva replied. "Why?"

"I'm giving a…sort of a self-defense class for young girls on Saturday." Jennifer nervously told her. "I've never done it before, and I would like to have someone there who could give me pointers…if I get stuck."

"I would love to." Ziva smiled. "What will you be teaching?"

"Nothing fancy." Jennifer said. "Just…what you can do if someone tries to attack you."

"Something _every_ child should be taught." Ziva commented. "Girls _and_ boys. Where and when?"

"1 pm at the community center here on base."

"I know where it's at." Ziva nodded, then smiled. "Should I prepare a class on guns and knives?"

"God, no." Jennifer's eyes went wide as she laughed. "I don't want to get _arrested_."

The elevator chimed and Abby exited, humming and dancing as she walked. When she saw Jennifer, she stopped and stared for a few seconds.

"Shouldn't you be in the break room?" She asked, making Ziva chuckle.

Jennifer just looked at them questionably.

"Never mind." Abby said, shaking her head. "I only brought one extra coffee…I didn't expect you to be here yet."

"She can have it." Ziva said, holding up her own for Abby to see.

"Thank you." Jennifer told Abby as she grabbed the cup. "Just what I needed."

Abby smiled as she drank from her Caf-Pow.

Tony arrived to find Ziva, McGee, and Willis already present.

He sat down at his desk and started sniffing around, then looked at Ziva suspiciously.

"What did you do to my desk?" He accused.

"Excuse me?" Ziva replied.

"Don't act so innocent." He said. "I _know_ you did something. It smells…rather pleasant, actually."

McGee got up and stood over Tony, sniffing.

"It _does_ smell nice." He said. "I don't think it was Ziva."

"_Excuse_ me?" Ziva repeated in an icy tone.

"It's perfume." McGee clarified, blushing. "Not your type."

Ziva just stared at him in disbelief.

"Quit while you're ahead, McSubtle." Tony recommended.

"Who said he was ahead?" Ziva replied.

"If you two canines are through sniffing each other," Gibbs announced as he rounded the corner, "we got a dead Marine."

Ziva looked over at Willis, then grabbed a paperclip and tossed it over on Tony's desk.

Tony and McGee looked at it, then over at Willis.

"You're sitting in the center." They both told him.

Lance Corporal John Fields had failed to report to physical training that morning. Because he failed to answer his phone, his…rather angry Squad Leader had to drive to his house, thinking he would find Fields hung over from a night of partying.

After a few minutes of beating on the front door, he walked around the house, swearing as he did. When he looked in the back door, he called 911.

"Lance Corporal Jonathan Fields." McGee stated. "24, married, no kids."

Gibbs looked around the room. Based on the amount of broken furniture, Fields had put up a fight. He looked at the body, lying on his back on a broken coffee table with a pencil sticking out of his right eye.

"Where's the wife?" He asked.

"According to Sergeant Kline, his Squad Leader," Tony answered, "her father had a heart attack last week, and she flew to Wyoming to be with him…that's where they are both from."

"Where is SGT Kline?" Gibbs asked.

"Out front." Tony replied. "He was wanting to go home and change…he's in his PT uniform…but I told him that we might have a few more questions first."

Gibbs looked at the body for a few more seconds.

"The first person to say either one is fired." He stated, then headed to the front yard to speak with SGT Kline.

"Either one?" Tony asked as Ziva took some pictures and McGee showed Brian how to mark evidence. "All I can think of is "cross the T's and dot the eyes"…is there another one?"

"Lead poisoning." Ziva and McGee said at the same time.

"That's a good one, too." Tony admitted. "Why didn't _I_ think of it?"

"You're slipping." McGee said.

"It happens when…" Ziva began, making a "you know what I'm talking about" gesture.

"When what?" Tony asked.

"You know." Ziva said as she took another picture.

"No…I don't know." Tony said, smiling. "Why don't _you_ tell me?"

"When you get old." Brian said, and Ziva and McGee exchanged amused glances.

Tony stared at Brian in absolute shock and was about to respond when Gibbs walked back in with Ducky, Jimmy, and Steven.

"It's always a shame when someone so young dies…especially when he does so in such a violent way." Ducky said as he looked at the body. "About the only thing more tragic is a lingering illness."

Ducky paused for a few seconds and stared at the pencil. "It appears that someone was crossing their T's and dotting their eyes." He added.

Everyone stared at Gibbs in shock as Ducky knelt down and stuck the thermometer in the body's liver.

"Time of death, Duck?" Gibbs asked icily.

Ducky looked at the temperature and appeared to do some calculations in his head. "Roughly 11 pm last night." He finally said.

"I think lead poisoning could be a viable cause of death." Jimmy said.

Gibbs just sighed.

"An interesting story there." Ducky said. "As everyone knows, the "lead" in pencils has never _actually_ been "lead", but graphite. It got the name "lead" when a large graphite deposit was discovered in England in the 16th century and, having no idea what to call it, the locals began calling it "plumbago", which is a derivative of the Latin "_plumbum"_, which means "lead" and "_agree"_, which means "to resemble"…because of its physical resemblance to the aforementioned mineral…"

"Duck?" Gibbs interrupted.

Without missing a beat, Ducky examined the victim's knuckles.

"It doesn't appear that he put up a struggle." He said.

"I'd have to disagree with you there." Tony said.

"And you went to medical school _where_?" Ducky testily asked.

"He just looked around the room, Duck." Gibbs intervened.

"Jethro." Ducky explained. "Just because he got the crap beat out of him and was tossed about the room like a ragdoll does _not_ mean that he fought back."

They all had to concede that he was correct.

Abby was setting up her lab table to receive evidence, explaining what she was doing.

"Because it will be awhile before we get any physical evidence," she was saying, "the first thing I do is study the pictures…to try and get a feel for the crime scene."

"Makes sense." Jennifer agreed.

"Take this one." Abby put up a picture of the body. "What can we gleam from this?"

"Ummm…that this is our victim?" Jennifer replied.

Abby just stared at her for a few seconds.

"Yes." She finally agreed. "There's _that_…but what can we tell about what _transpired_ at the scene by just examining this picture?"

"Well." Jennifer studied the picture for a few seconds. "The assailant was left handed."

Abby looked at Jennifer, then back at the picture, then back at Jennifer, then back at the picture for a few seconds, then back at Jennifer.

"Explain." She finally said.

"If I'm right handed and facing you," she began, acting out what she was saying, "and I stab you in the eye…I stab you in the _left_ eye…but if I'm _left_ handed…"

"You would stab me in the _right_ eye." Abby concluded.

Jennifer just nodded.

Abby looked at the picture for a few more seconds then turned back to Jennifer.

"Let's go see Gibbs." She said.

Everyone was standing around the large screen, briefing Gibbs, when they walked up.

Jennifer smiled at Brian, who gave a nervous smile in reply and turned away.

"What's up, Abbs?" Gibbs asked.

"You guys are _not_ gonna believe this." Abby told him, laughing.

Everyone turned to Jennifer, whose eyes went wide.

"Well?" Gibbs asked impatiently.

"Well." Jennifer repeated. "The assailant is probably left handed."

As one…Gibbs, Ziva, Tony, and McGee turned to stare at Abby.

"Explain to them why." Abby encouraged.

"Stabbing someone in the eye with a pencil smacks of impulse…not premeditation." Jennifer began. "If I'm _right_ handed and facing you…I stab you in the _left_ eye…but if I'm _left_ handed…"

Like in the lab…she acted out what she was explaining.

When she was finished, they all turned to McGee…whose eyes went wide.

"Well?" Gibbs asked impatiently.

"I…didn't notice any lefties." McGee finally said.

"You're slipping." Tony said.

"It happens when…" Ziva began, making a "you know what I'm talking about" gesture.

"When what?" McGee asked.

"You know." Abby said, smiling. "Don't make us say it."

"Good work, you two." Gibbs said, then had an idea. "If the _attack_ was impulse, maybe the _meeting_ was unplanned."

"Like a robbery gone wrong." Ziva offered.

"McGee." Gibbs said.

"Checking for any crime patterns in the area." McGee said as he sat down and started typing.

Abby smiled at Jennifer and motioned for them to head back to the lab.

Gibbs let them get a head start, then turned to Brian.

"Willis…you're with me." He said as he headed to the elevator to go see Ducky.

When the elevator door closed, Tony looked over at Ziva.

"I think I prefer Thomas." He said.

"_What!?_" Ziva practically screamed. "_You would rather have a serial killer?_"

"He had his redeeming qualities." Tony replied.

"Like what?" Ziva asked.

"He respected his elders." McGee chimed in. "Never called him "old"."

"Hey." Tony pointed at him. "As Abby pointed out…you ain't exactly a spring chicken, yourself."

"Actually, she _didn't_ point it out." Ziva said. "She only _threatened_ to."

Tony looked at Ziva, then back at McGee…who gave him a smug look.

"She's not _your_ type, either." Tony told him.

"_What?_" McGee asked in disbelief. "_Who?_"

"_Who?_" Tony laughed. "Young lady ninja, _that's_ who."

"Why do you say that?" McGee asked skeptically.

"Because you're a lefty." Tony laughed.

"_And?_" McGee replied.

"The whole _family_ doesn't like lefties." Ziva chimed in, laughing. "It's in their D.N.A."

To be continued

7


	3. Chapter 3

**N.C.I.S.: Karma Squared**

Chapter 3

"What you got, Duck." Gibbs asked as he and Brian entered the lab.

"I've only just begun my examination." Ducky commented.

Gibbs just looked at him expectantly.

"Well, obviously not a cause of death, yet." Ducky sighed. "But I _do_ have some interesting tidbits of information gleaned from our friend, here."

"Such as?"

"I was correct in my initial assessment." Ducky began. "Based on everything I have seen so far… Lance Corporal John Fields does _not_ appear to have defended himself."

He picked up the hands, pointing the knuckles out to Gibbs.

"No signs of defensive wounds." He explained. "But, the most curious item I have noticed thus far is the pencil…there is hardly any bleeding. I am almost ashamed that I did not notice it at the scene."

"What does it mean?" Gibbs asked.

"The heart was barely beating when he was stabbed with it." Ducky explained. "So…one…it was _not_ the cause of death and…two…it was a _completely_ unnecessary action."

"Like an impulsive gesture?" Brian inquired.

Ducky turned to him…mentally considering it.

"Yes." He agreed. "_Exactly_ like one." He turned to Gibbs. "Sort of like a final degradation."

"Kicking an opponent after they are already down?" Gibbs asked.

"Exactly." Ducky replied. "Our assailant had a "You dared to challenge me, so I am inflicting as much damage as possible." mentality."

"Alright." Gibbs said. "Anything else?"

"As I said earlier…I've only just begun." Ducky replied, shaking his head.

After they left, Ducky turned back to the body and continued to explain to Steven what to look for.

"What you got, McGee?" Gibbs yelled as they exited the elevator.

"A crime spree, boss." McGee replied. "Repeated house break-ins in a roughly ten mile radius around Lance Corporal Fields residence."

"How many?" Gibbs asked.

"Nine in the last seven months." McGee said.

"Local police have any leads?" Gibbs asked.

"No." McGee replied. "And if ours _is_ related, it's the first time anyone has been physically assaulted."

Gibbs stared at the map McGee had put on the monitor pinpointing all the break-in victims.

"What we got on our victim?" He finally asked.

"Lance Corporal Jonathan Fields." Ziva began. "24, married, no kids…as Tony mentioned earlier, his wife, Caroline, has been in Wyoming since last Tues to be with her parents. She has been notified and is currently trying to schedule a flight back. He joined the Marines at nineteen…he and Caroline were already married."

"According to Sergeant Kline," Tony picked up, "Lance Corporal Fields has been in the unit for a little over a year. Hard worker…no disciplinary problems and, until this morning, had never been late for duty. From what we can tell, he didn't go out very often, but he had a lot of friends in the unit that would come over for drinks."

"Finances?"

"A young couple." McGee took over. "In debt, but not unusually so. Car payment, Student loan…Caroline's, two credit cards, and various other loans for a total of $90,000…$55,000 of which was the student loan. No overdue payments…they owed a lot, but paid everything on time."

"Neighbors?"

"Everyone I spoke to says they stuck to themselves." Ziva said. "No friends in the area…but no enemies, either. They _did_ like to hold the occasional party, and were sometimes loud…but nothing excessive."

"Anything missing from the house?" Brian asked. When everyone turned to him, he continued. "I mean, if it _was_ a robbery gone wrong, whoever did it broke in for a _reason_."

"Now why didn't _we_ think of that?" Tony said with more than a little irritation in his voice. When Gibbs looked at him, he corrected himself. "Nothing obvious is missing…but we will ask the wife to do an inventory when she gets here."

"Alright," Gibbs said. "McGee, get the reports of all the robberies, maybe Abby can find something to link everything together. Ziva, Tony, go back over the scene with the idea that it was a break-in…take Bruce with you."

Luckily, Brian had heard that line so many times, he had given up trying to correct it.

As she was leaving for the day, Jennifer stopped at McGee's desk on her way out.

"McGee…can I ask a favor of you?"

"Sure." He told her. "What is it?"

"Abby says you're good with computers." She said.

"I am." He replied.

"Mine has been acting really screwy for the past three weeks." She explained.

"What's it been doing?"

"Well, it _used_ to be _super_ fast, then, all of a sudden, it isn't. It locks up for minutes at a time and sometimes it even reboots on its own." She smiled. "It's driving me _batty_."

She handed it to him and he turned it over to look at the back.

"This is an awesome model…top of the line…quad-core, 8 Gigabytes of RAM." He admired. "You might have some malware or vi…" He looked up to see her staring at him in confusion. "I'll look at it…when do you need it back?"

"Before the weekend will be fine…if you're able to look at it by then." She said.

"I'll have it back to you by then." He promised.

"Thank you _so_ much." She smiled.

"Not a problem." He replied.

When McGee sat down at his desk the next morning, it was obvious he was disturbed. Ziva and Tony looked at each other, then at McGee.

"What wrong?" Ziva asked.

McGee looked at her, then looked around for Brian.

"Gibbs took him with him down to see Abby." Ziva told him.

"Boss is already here?" McGee asked.

"I don't think he left last night." Tony commented.

McGee took a deep breath, then picked up Jennifer's computer.

"I figured out what's wrong with it." He said.

"And?" Ziva asked.

"Someone placed a piece of software on it." He began. "It basically hacked into the webcam, recording whatever it saw, and then sent the recorded video back to whoever installed it via the internet connection several times a day."

Ziva and Tony just stared at him wide-eyed for several seconds.

"Incredibly brave person." Tony finally commented. "Do you know who it is?"

"I know the _name_," McGee answered, then shook his head, "but I don't know his relationship to Jennifer."

"You spoke in past tense." Ziva observed.

"Yea." McGee blushed. "I kinda…erased every file on his computer…_and_ the home server he is using."

"It's a start." Tony said. "But I still want to meet him."

"Get in line behind me." Ziva told him. "And Gibbs."

"One thing is for sure." Abby was telling Gibbs. "Our Lance Corporal was too drunk to fight back."

"Not "passed out" drunk." Jennifer added. "But drunk enough to impair his movement."

"We're guessing .15." Abby said. "Which is almost twice the legal limit…not that I'm condemning him, I mean, he was in his _house_, not behind the wheel of a _vehicle_, but he would have been easy picking for our assailant."

"What do we have on the assailant?" Gibbs asked.

"We're still going over the evidence, but haven't found any unexpected D.N.A." Jennifer answered.

"Unexpected?" Gibbs asked.

"We've found some traces from several members of his unit." Abby clarified. "Which is normal…if he ever had anybody over."

"Just a thought." Brian interjected. When Gibbs just looked at him expectantly, he continued. "We know that he liked to have friends over for parties…maybe he had someone over last night."

"Didn't find any strange D.N.A." Gibbs asked, testing him. "And the place was pretty trashed, how could we find any evidence for a party?"

"We know Fields had been drinking." Brian answered. "Is the amount of missing alcohol from any open containers enough to account for what we believe his BAC to be? Or is there more alcohol missing than _he_ could have drank?"

Gibbs turned to Abby.

"We'll…check on that." Abby said.

"Keep me informed." Gibbs said, and turned to leave as McGee entered the lab holding Jennifer's laptop.

"Boss, can I talk with you in private?" He asked.

"Go back upstairs and see what DiNozzo has for you." Gibbs told Brian, then motioned McGee into Abby's office and shut the door.

"I wonder what _that's_ about." Abby said.

Five minutes later, they opened the door and Abby noticed that Gibbs was _pissed_.

"Do you know a Kevin Brown?" Gibbs calmly asked Jennifer.

"_Kevin Brown?_" Jennifer replied. "He's my lab partner…why?"

Gibbs turned to McGee, who set the laptop on the evidence table.

"I figured out what was wrong with your laptop." He began. "Kevin Brown installed some software on it that constantly recorded whatever was in view of your webcam, then sent the video back to him every three hours…as long as there was an internet connection."

For a few seconds, Jennifer just stared at him with fury in her eyes, and Abby was reminded of how Jason had looked while sitting at the back of the ambulance after the hostage situation.

The resemblance was uncanny.

"I hope he doesn't have any plans that involve walking for the next few years." Jennifer finally said. "Because when I get through with him…he won't be able to."

"I have cleaned the laptop," McGee offered, "and erased the hard drive of his computer and the home server he was using as a backup."

"But he could still recover the files." Jennifer replied, and Abby could tell she was near tears.

"Not the way _I_ did it." McGee smiled. "The _F.B.I._ wouldn't be able to recover anything."

"Thank you." Jennifer half-smiled.

"Has he posted anything online?" Abby asked.

"Not that I was able to find." McGee said. "I have some software that scours the internet, looking for specific files. I have entered the parameters of all his files into it…no hits so far."

"Thank you." Jennifer repeated.

"McGee." Gibbs said, then motioned for him to go.

"If you have any more problems," McGee told Jennifer, "just let me know."

"You can have that." Jennifer replied, motioning to the laptop. "I'll get another one tonight…I have all the files I need on a thumb drive."

McGee looked at Gibbs, who nodded.

"Alright." He told her as he grabbed the machine. "If you change your mind, just let me know."

"I won't." She told him.

"OK." He said. "But let me check out the thumb drive before you use it."

Jennifer narrowed her eyes, clenched her jaw, and nodded.

He just smiled, and left.

After the elevator door closed, Gibbs turned to Jennifer.

"Let me handle this." He told her.

"Thank you." She icily replied. "But I think _I_ want to."

"You have a lot more to lose than _I_ do." Gibbs calmly replied. When she just looked at him, he continued. "If this loser found out how rich you are, he would probably sue you. Although I'm sure it's little comfort, McGee is ensuring no…harm…was done. I can fix it so you never have to look at this creep again."

Jennifer _and_ Abby just stared at him.

"Not like _that_." He laughed. "I think he will be transferring to another school later this week. Please, Jennifer, let me take care of this."

Jennifer just looked at the floor and nodded. Gibbs glanced at Abby, then headed to the elevator.

"Thank you." Jennifer called after him.

He paused in the doorway and turned.

"No need to thank me." Gibbs said, shaking his head. "Your dad risked his life to protect someone I care about." He explained with a glance at Abby. "I'm just returning the favor."

To be continued

7


	4. Chapter 4

**N.C.I.S.: Karma Squared**

Chapter 4

Gibbs hung up his phone and stood up.

"Let's roll." He ordered.

"Another victim?" Tony asked as everyone stood and grabbed their bags.

"Don't know yet." Gibbs told him. "That was Metro P.D…they have a dead civilian in what they think is a robbery gone wrong."

"Neighbors found him this morning." The Detective at the scene was telling Gibbs. "An elderly gentleman who lives alone, but the family next door has sort of adopted him, and check on him every morning."

"Nice of them." Ziva commented.

"When the wife came over this morning to bring him breakfast," the detective continued, "She found him like this."

They looked at the body lying in the kitchen in a pool of blood.

"I noticed the ransacking in the living room," he gestured that way, and they saw that it was apparently a robbery, "and remembered hearing about _your_ case…just trying to help, though I have no idea if they are related."

"We appreciate it." Gibbs replied. "We could use all the help we can get."

The Detective nodded in sympathy.

"Because he's not military," the Detective said, "my medical examiner will handle the body…but I will have him share his results with yours."

"Thank you." Gibbs told him.

"You got a cause of death, Duck?" Gibbs asked, referring to Lance Corporal Fields.

"His heart stopped." Ducky replied.

"Not now, Duck." Gibbs sighed. "I'm _really_ not in the mood for it."

"Heart Arrhythmia, to be precise." Ducky clarified. "A normally harmless condition which alters the heart's speed for a short period of time."

"So it wasn't murder?" Gibbs asked.

"That is for _you_ to decide." Ducky said. "All I can tell you is the Arrhythmia was probably exasperated by alcohol and the physical activity from getting beat upon. He probably passed out in the middle of it."

"Which would explain what you said about the pencil wound." Gibbs observed.

"Precisely." Ducky exclaimed.

Gibbs sighed and left.

As Jennifer was leaving on Friday, she stopped at Ziva's desk.

"We still on for tomorrow?" She asked.

"I will be there." Ziva promised.

"Thanks." Jennifer replied. As she turned to leave, she heard Brian call her name. Turning, she saw him walking up to her.

"Did you hear about Kevin?" He asked.

She just shook her head, not being able to even _feign_ interest.

"He dropped out this morning." Brian told her. "But that's not the weird part."

Jennifer just looked at him.

"When he was turning his books in," Brian continued, "he had a black eye and a bandage on his nose."

Ziva and Tony just stared at each other in amused shock.

Much like Jennifer stared at Brian.

"Said he was heading back to Connecticut." Brian shrugged.

"Did he say who beat him up?" Jennifer asked.

"Not that I heard." Brian replied. "Thomas called me up at lunch to tell me."

Jennifer just nodded and continued to the elevator with Brian in tow.

"Say, do you have any plans tomorrow night?" He asked when they were out of hearing range of the others.

She just shook her head.

"Would you like to have dinner?" He asked shyly. "Maybe a movie?"

"I'd like that." She smiled.

"Six o'clock?"

She just nodded.

"Where can I pick you up at?" He asked.

"What's your number?" She asked as she pulled her phone out, then texted her address to the number he gave her.

"Thanks." He said as he looked at his phone. "I'll see you tomorrow."

She smiled and nodded as she pressed the elevator button and he headed back to his desk.

Sometime later, when it was just the four of them, Ziva approached Gibbs' desk and just stared.

"Can I help you?" He asked after a few seconds.

"Do you think that was wise?" Ziva asked as Tony and McGee looked up.

"Do I think _what_ was wise?" Gibbs asked impatiently.

"Assaulting Kevin." Ziva clarified. "At least…leaving a mark."

"See, that's the thing." Gibbs said as he put down the report he was reading. "_I_ didn't lay a finger on him…in fact, I was about to ask _you_ why you did it."

"If _I_ had done it," Ziva replied in open shock, "he would still be unconscious in the hospital…with no mark on him."

They looked over at Tony.

"Don't look at _me_." He told them. "He would still be in the hospital with many _more_ marks on him."

They all turned to McGee.

"Nope." Was all McGee said in the way of a defense.

"Then who did it?" Ziva asked.

"Jennifer?" Tony offered.

"She promised me she wouldn't." Gibbs said. "She seems like someone who keeps their word."

"Maybe it was someone else." McGee offered. When they all looked at him skeptically, he clarified. "We don't know how many people he has done this to…maybe somebody _else_ tracked him down."

"Too coincidental that they would track him down _now_." Tony commented. "And I don't like coincidences."

"Rule 39." Ziva and McGee said at the same time.

Tony gave Ziva an amused look.

"And just what do _you_ two have planned for tomorrow?" He asked.

"Who?" Ziva innocently replied.

"_Who!?_" Tony laughed. "You and teenage intern ninja girl…_that's_ who."

"Do you just sit around making that stuff up?" McGee asked.

"Quiet, you." Tony shot back without taking his eyes off Ziva.

Ziva, for her part, seductively walked over and leaned on his desk.

"So you want to know what we have planned." She asked.

"That's…why I asked." Tony smiled.

"Something that involves a _lot_ of physical activity." She teased as she ran her finger over his shoulder, then stood up straight. "I _would_ invite you, but it is only for girls. Sorry."

She smiled and walked back to her desk, glancing at him over her shoulder before she turned and sat down slowly.

Tony and McGee stared at her in shock.

"What if I threaten to file sex discrimination charges against you?" Tony asked when he was able to talk, then thought for a second before continuing. "Just how _many_ girls are we talking about, anyway?"

"Hopefully a _lot_." Ziva smiled. "The more, the merrier." She told him as she picked up a pen and started chewing on the end of it.

Tony just stared at her.

The area Jennifer had reserved at the Community Center was covered with an exercise mat and contained a large punching bag.

Although she was excited about teaching the class, she was disappointed that more girls hadn't shown up.

She looked at the nine girls who _did_ show up (appearing to range in age from about nine to fifteen) and smiled.

"To begin with," she was telling them after she introduced herself and had all the girls tell everyone _their_ names, "what I am going to teach you is not to be used unless you are in real danger. If you use it while playing with your friends, you could seriously hurt them. Does everyone understand and agree to follow this rule?"

She looked around as everyone nodded.

"Also," she continued, "some of what I will tell you may shock you…but it is for your own safety. I would rather shock, and even _scare_ you _now_ so that you will know what to do if you are ever in danger."

With that, she began her class.

Ziva was impressed.

"_Never_ cooperate." She was telling them. "If someone succeeds in kidnapping you, statistically speaking, you will not survive…so you must do everything you can to make sure that they _don't_ succeed."

One of the girls raised her hand.

"Yes?" Jennifer acknowledged her.

"What can we do against an adult?" She asked.

"A _very_ good question." Jennifer smiled. "And before I answer it, I have to remind you of my disclaimer about shocking you. It all depends on if your attacker is a man or a woman. Statistically speaking, if an adult that you do not know attacks you, it will, in all likelihood, be a man."

She looked at each girl before she continued.

"If that is the case," she continued, "the easiest way to hurt them is to punch them between the legs."

She had to pause as all of the girls laughed.

"Yes, I know it _sounds_ funny." Jennifer said. "But, again, if they succeed in abducting you, you will probably not survive…and they have the advantage of weight and strength on you, so you must use every means at your disposal to protect yourself."

Another girl raised her hand.

"Yes?" Jennifer asked.

"What if it is a woman who attacks us?" The girl asked.

"While a _female_ does not have a spot to hit that is as crippling as a _man's_," Jennifer answered, "a punch to the chest is painful enough that it might give you time to escape."

She paused again as all of the girls cringed.

"And keep in mind," Jennifer continued, "when you defend yourself, _don't_ hold back…hit them as hard as you can, because the alternative is not nice at all."

"What about kicking?" A girl asked.

"When you get taller." Jennifer told her. "It is _very_ difficult for a young person to deliver a kick to the proper area with the speed and power necessary to inflict pain."

She took a break from talking to show them how to deliver a punch with as much force as possible using the large punching bag. Jennifer gave them pointers while Ziva held the bag, providing enough motivation to encourage the girls to do their best.

After all the girls had been given a chance, Jennifer continued with her instruction while they drank water.

"Another advantage you have," she was saying, "is your nails."

She held up her hand like a claw and made a scratching motion.

"Man or woman, getting scratched _hurts_." She laughed. "Can everyone make a clawing motion for me?"

She looked around as all the girls mimicked her.

"Very good." She told them. "And clawing does something else. Does everyone know about D.N.A.?"

She paused as they all nodded.

"When you scratch someone…" she continued, "and again, don't hold back. Scratch as hard as you can. And when you scratch, you get the D.N.A. of the person attacking you underneath your fingernails…so, if you are able to get away, do _not_ wash your hands, because the police can swab your hand and indentify the person who attacked you."

She paused as most of the girls looked at their fingernails.

Another girl (Laura, if Jennifer remembered correctly) raised her hand with a confused look.

"Yes?" Jennifer smiled.

"What does "swab" mean?" She asked. "And does it hurt?"

"No." Jennifer laughed. "When the police "swab" your hand, they use a cotton swab to remove anything there, then process the swab for D.N.A." She smiled again. "I _promise_ you…it is _completely_ painless."

The younger girls nodded and smiled with a relieved look on their face.

"Finally." Jennifer continued. "When you _are_ able to get free…run. Don't try to reason with them or talk to them, just run. And if there are other people around, scream. And when you scream, don't hold back…scream like your life depends on it…because, it _does_."

She looked at each girl in turn.

"Does anybody have any questions?" she asked.

They all shook their heads.

"Then that concludes our class." She said.

All of the girls sighed in disappointment.

"I know." Jennifer said. "Learning how to defend yourself is fun…but again, I want to stress that it is _very_ serious, and I truly hope that nobody here _ever_ has to use what I have taught you here today."

She looked at her watch.

"I have this area reserved for another 30 minutes." She said. "So if your parents agree to it, I will stay and let you have more practice on the punching bag."

As all the girls talked to their parents, Jennifer talked to Ziva.

"Thank you _so_ much." She told her.

"No need to thank me." Ziva laughed. "I didn't _do_ anything. You did great."

"Thanks." Jennifer replied. "But, just having you here for _moral_ support really helped. You don't have to stay, if you have other plans…"

"I'm good." Ziva told her as several girls walked back over to them.

She was waiting on the sidewalk when Brian pulled up to her building.

"Nice car." She said as she got in the fully loaded red Charger.

"Thanks." He told her as he pulled into traffic. "I've seen you driving _your_ Mustang…I didn't know they came in that color."

"My mom had it custom painted for a birthday present." She said.

"Cool mom." He laughed. "_My_ dad made me save for half of this."

She gave him a puzzled look, wondering how long it would take an eighteen year old to save for half of a forty-five thousand dollar car (she knew the price because she had been given the option of what kind of car to get, and the Charger had been one of the final three).

"I do believe that you are the only person in our school who lives in this neighborhood." He laughed.

"I wanted to be near my dad." She told him.

"He lives around here?" He asked, and she thought she detected just a hint of nervousness in his voice.

"_No_." She laughed. "He died last year. I am renting the apartment he lived in."

They were at a stoplight, and he just looked at her curiously.

"It's a long story." She waved her hand. "Not for a first date."

He nodded and turned back when the light turned green.

"So where are you from?" He asked.

"Virginia." She said. "My mother has a successful business as an investment counselor there…you?"

"Pennsylvania." He said. "My family got rich there in the 1930s and 40s in steel and coal."

"Then what are you doing _here_?" She laughed as they turned into the parking lot of a rather expensive restaurant. "Shouldn't you be at Harvard?"

"Too stuffy." He laughed as he gave his keys to the valet. "My brother is being groomed to take over the business…_I_ just want to try to prove to myself that I can make it on my own."

She smiled as she put her arm through his and they entered the restaurant.

To be continued

8


	5. Chapter 5

**N.C.I.S.: Karma Squared**

Chapter 5

"How did it go?" Abby asked with a smile.

They were in the lab on Monday morning. Jennifer had just arrived and set her stuff down.

"It went good." Jennifer nodded, smiling. "We had dinner at a _very_ expensive restaurant…my menu didn't even have prices…and we went to a movie."

"Nice." Abby said. "Did he hold the door open for you?"

"I was waiting at the curb when he arrived." Jennifer shook her head. "But he did at the restaurant."

Abby smiled as her phone rang. She grabbed it and looked at the caller ID.

Gibbs.

"What's up, Gibbs?" She answered.

"Could you come up here for a minute?" Gibbs asked her.

"On our way." Abby said with a confused look as she ended the call. "I can't believe he's even _in_ yet, let alone asking us to come up."

When the elevator opened, they saw Gibbs, Tony, McGee, and Brian, who smiled at Jennifer.

"What's up?" Abby asked.

Gibbs, who had been waiting for them to arrive, began his briefing.

"Last night," he said, "the home of a Naval Lieutenant who is currently deployed to the Middle East was broken in to. While _he_ obviously wasn't there, his wife and ten year old daughter _were_."

Both Abby and Jennifer grimaced, expecting the worst.

"The wife was stabbed," Gibbs continued, "and the daughter was attacked, but she managed to escape the house and get the attention of some neighbors who were just getting home. When the neighbors entered the house, the assailant was gone. The wife has been taken to the hospital here on post, where she is currently in stable condition and expected to make a full recovery."

"Has the husband been notified?" McGee asked.

"His Commander has." Gibbs replied. "While the wife's condition is good news…more important to our case is the daughter. She is an eye witness, and says she can describe the attacker."

Everyone nodded…it was definitely good news.

"Ziva is currently at the hospital," Gibbs continued, "when the Doctor releases the girl, Ziva will bring her here to tell Abby what he looked like."

As he spoke, the elevator chimed and they all turned to see Ziva exit it.

For a second, Abby was puzzled, but then she realized that the girl who was with Ziva was too short to see over the dividers.

When they rounded the corner, the girl took one look at Jennifer and went running to her.

"Jennifer!" She cried, to everyone's surprise.

Although Jennifer recognized the girl from her class on Saturday, it took a few seconds to remember her name.

"Laura?" She finally asked as she bent down and the girl threw her arms around her and hugged her tightly.

"I did just what you taught." Laura cried. "I punched him and took off running when he let me go. When I got outside, I started screaming."

"Very good." Jennifer smiled, then frowned when she noticed the girl's hand. "But, you have blood on you. Are you injured?"

"It's not _my_ blood." Laura shook her head. "After I punched him, he fell to his knees, but didn't let me go…so I scratched him, right here." She pointed at Jennifer's face (on the left jaw-line between the ear and the mouth). "It's _his_ blood. The Doctor at the hospital wanted to wash it off, but I wouldn't let him."

"Really?" Gibbs asked, smiling.

Laura looked at him and nodded, then turned back to Jennifer.

"But…nobody has asked to swab it." She said, then looked around to see everybody staring at her.

"Did I do something wrong?" She asked.

"Nooooooo." Gibbs shook his head, smiling.

"You did _exactly_ the right thing." Jennifer, who was also smiling, told her.

"C'mon." Abby, who also had a smile on her face, placed her hand on the girl's shoulder. "Let's go swab your hand."

"You promise it won't hurt?" The girl asked as the elevator doors opened.

"I _promise_." Jennifer laughed as they entered. "And when we're done, we will go get some ice cream."

"I like chocolate." Laura replied.

"I _thought_ she looked familiar." Ziva commented after the doors had closed.

Gibbs just looked at her and laughed, then turned to McGee.

"What are you waiting for?" He demanded.

"Boss?" McGee nervously asked.

"Go get some chocolate ice cream." Gibbs ordered.

"On it, Boss." McGee replied as he ran to the other elevator.

"And get me some coffee." Gibbs added.

"Got it." McGee yelled.

"Just where, exactly, did she punch him?" Tony wondered aloud.

"The only place a ten year old _can_ punch a grown man to bring him to his knees, DiNozzo." Gibbs answered.

Tony had to think for a few seconds, then his eyes went wide and he looked over at Ziva, who just laughed.

When Gibbs sat down, he looked at Brian.

"Willis." He said and pointed at his scabbed knuckles. "What happened?"

Brian just stared at him with a questioning look.

"What happened to your hands?" Gibbs repeated, getting impatient.

"You would be wise to tell him the truth." Ziva whispered.

"_And_ to not make him ask again." Tony added.

Brian looked at his hands, then back at Gibbs, who was waiting for an answer.

"After you left last week," he began, then clarified, "the campus…after your talk with Kevin…he started drinking and bragging about what he had done to Jennifer. Me and a couple of my friends kinda…showed him the error of his ways."

Tony and Ziva just stared at each other as Gibbs gave Brian a smirk.

"Does Jennifer know what you did?" He asked.

Brian just shook his head.

"Alright." Gibbs said. "She won't hear it from us."

He looked at Tony and Ziva.

"_Will_ she?" He added.

They just shook their heads and headed to their desks.

Later, Laura was sitting next to Ziva's desk, eating the ice cream.

"I'm sorry I didn't recognize you earlier." She told Ziva.

"Think nothing of it." Ziva smiled.

"You're a _lot_ prettier when you're not dressed like a cop." Laura said, then took another bite of ice cream.

"Why _thank_ you." Ziva replied.

McGee's computer beeped with a text from Abby.

"Boss?" McGee said as he read the message. "Abby has had a hit on the D.N.A."

"Put it up." Gibbs said as he stood and walked to the large screen.

"That's _him_." Laura said when the picture appeared. "That's the man who attacked us."

"You're _sure_?" Gibbs asked her, puzzled.

Laura just nodded and ate another spoonful of ice cream as everyone turned back to the monitor and stared at the picture in shock.

"Get him in here." Gibbs finally ordered Tony and Ziva. "McGee?"

"Pulling up his records now." McGee said as he typed on his keyboard.

As they watched Sergeant Kline through the window of the interrogation room, he reached up and touched the bandage that almost covered the lower part of the left side of his face.

He turned as Gibbs walked in and, without saying a word, sat down opposite him, opened up the folder he had brought in, and started reading a report.

"Pay attention, Willis." Tony told the intern. "You're about to see a true _Master_ at work."

"That's a rather large bandage you have there." Gibbs said, without looking up from his reading. "What in the world could _possibly_ have happened to require it?"

"I cut myself shaving." Sergeant Kline told him.

"What do you shave with?" Gibbs looked up as he laughed. "An ax?"

Kline just stared at him without answering.

"Get any _other_ injuries lately?" Gibbs asked. "Of a more…personal nature?"

Again, Kline just stared at him, but with a questioning look.

Gibbs smiled and leaned back.

"Aren't you curious as to why you were brought here?" He asked.

"All your Agent told me was "suspicion of murder"."Kline shrugged as he answered. "I figured that I would let _you_ explain what she meant."

"Alright." Gibbs said calmly. "We have you for attempted murder and two counts of assault. Before it's all over with, we will be adding two charges of murder to the list."

"Murder?" Kline smiled. "Attempted murder? Assault? I really have no idea what you're talking about."

"Well then, let me spell it out for you." Gibbs voice was starting to get louder, and everyone behind the glass knew he was losing his patience…and temper. "We have you on attempted murder and assault because the injury you are covering with that bandage matches the hand of the ten year old girl you attacked…after you had stabbed her mother. Tell me…how is your ego doing after getting your ass kicked by a child?"

"Wasn't me." Kline said.

"Oh, we don't need your _confession_ for last night." Gibbs laughed. "We recovered your D.N.A. from under the fingernails of the little girl who punched you in the nads…._and_, to add insult to your…injuries…she also positively identified you as the man who she beat up."

Kline just stared at him.

"They're going to _love_ you in prison when they hear about _that_." Gibbs added, laughing.

"I'll talk." Kline said after thinking it over. "But I want a lawyer present."

Gibbs just gathered up his paperwork and left.

When he opened the door to the observation room, they all suddenly stopped talking.

When he looked at them, they were all staring back at him.

"What?" He demanded.

They all looked at each other, but no one answered.

"What is it?" He repeated.

"You tell him." Tony told Ziva.

"Why _me_?" She asked.

"Because he won't hit _you_." Tony replied. "As hard."

"Hey!" Gibbs yelled, making them all jump. "_Somebody_ better tell me!"

"We were all talking." Ziva began hesitantly.

"_And?_" Gibbs demanded.

"And…we…we decided that," Ziva hesitated, "that it would be better if…if you didn't use that word anymore."

"What word?" Gibbs asked, genuinely puzzled.

Ziva looked at Tony.

"Nads. Boss." Tony said. "We don't want you to use the word "nads" anymore."

Gibbs just stared at them.

"It's…actually kind of…creepy," Ziva said, "when _you_ say it."

"And more than a little nauseating." Tony added.

Gibbs turned to McGee.

"Are you part of this?" He demanded to know.

"I have _no_ part in it." McGee assured him.

He turned back to Tony and Ziva.

"And just what word _should_ I use?" He asked them.

""Groin" would be good." Ziva offered.

"Or "privates"." Tony added and Ziva nodded in agreement.

""Privates is fine." She said.

"Anything but "nads"." Tony said.

Gibbs stared at them for a few seconds, then turned to leave, then turned _back_ to them.

"I'm going to take a piss." He said. "Is piss alright? Can I say piss?"

"Actually." McGee answered. "_I_ find that to be rather unsettling."

When Gibbs turned to stare at him, he continued.

"Why not just say "Going to the Head."?"

Gibbs looked at them with fury, then turned and stormed out...slamming the door.

"He took that rather well." Tony commented when the door was closed.

"How do you figure?" Brian asked. "He looked _pissed_ to me."

"No head slaps." McGee said.

"He has a tendency to slap the back of your head when he's _really_ mad at you." Ziva explained.

After Laura had been picked up by an Aunt who had flown in, Abby and Jennifer went back to the lab.

A short time later, Ducky showed up with a visitor.

"Dr. Stevens." Abby greeted. "Good to see you again."

"Hi, Abby." Dr. Stevens smiled. "How have you been?"

"Great." Abby replied, then her eyes went wide. "Oh my God…you'll never _guess_ who's here."

Abby turned to Jennifer.

"This is Dr. Stevens." She said. "She was your father's Doctor throughout his illness."

"Nice to _finally_ meet you." Jennifer smiled as they shook hands. "Thank you for the book."

"It was the least I could do." Dr. Stevens said, then laughed. "Boy, when everyone told me how much you resembled him, I didn't believe it…now I see that they were actually _understating_ it."

Jennifer just smiled.

"The reason for Dr. Stevens' visit is not entirely social, I'm afraid." Ducky told them. "And it concerns your father."

Jennifer looked at her, starting to get nervous.

"You were conceived after he returned from Desert Storm." Dr. Stevens said.

"That's right." Jennifer nodded, although it wasn't a question.

Dr. Stevens took a deep breath before continuing.

"I would like to test you." She finally said.

For a few seconds, Jennifer just stared at her, when she realized what she was saying, her eyes went wide.

"You think that I…" Jennifer began.

"It's unlikely." Ducky interrupted. "In fact, there are three _other_ children in your shoes that have already been tested…with negative results."

"The thing is," Dr. Stevens continued, "there is so little known about the disease that he had. As Dr. Mallard pointed out, it is _unlikely_ that you inherited anything…impossible, if you use previous cases in your statistics, but…_I_ don't want to take any chances."

"Even if the results come back positive," Jennifer reasoned, "what can you do about it?"

"You got me, there." Dr. Stevens shrugged. "And it's your choice…I can't _force_ you to be tested."

Jennifer looked at Abby for advice.

"Like she said," Abby told her, "It's _your_ choice…but if it were _me_…_I_ would want to know…one way or the other."

Jennifer just nodded.

"Alright," she turned back to Dr. Stevens, "what do you need?"

"A few blood samples." Dr. Stevens replied. "Normally, I would ask you to come to my office so that I could take them…but since we _are_ in a forensics' lab…"

Abby laughed and walked over to her cabinet to get the required tools.

To be continued

8


	6. Chapter 6

**N.C.I.S.: Karma Squared**

Chapter 6

An hour after the lawyer arrived, she knocked on the window, indicating that they were ready to proceed.

"My client has agreed to talk to you." Kline's lawyer (a JAG Officer who had been called in) told Gibbs after he had reentered and sat down opposite them. "For the record…I am opposed to it."

Gibbs just shrugged and turned to Sergeant Kline.

"What do you want to know?" Kline asked.

"For starters," Gibbs replied, "did you kill Lance Corporal Jonathan Fields?"

Kline glanced at his attorney before responding.

"Not intentionally." He told Gibbs.

"Then how did it happen?" Gibbs asked.

"I arrived at about 2000," Kline began, "we were _supposed_ to go out that night on a run, but he was too drunk to do _anything_."

"A "run"?" Gibbs interrupted.

"Yea." Kline told him. "A robbery. I was already dressed in our uniform…which was designed to limit the amount of…physical evidence we left behind; fingerprints, hairs, skin flakes, you know."

"Are you saying Fields was your _partner_ in these robberies?" Gibbs was caught off guard…and he didn't like it.

"One of them." Kline nodded. "We got into a fight…and he just…collapsed. He wasn't breathing…I panicked and left."

"You're leaving something out." Gibbs told him. When Kline just looked at him questionably, he clarified. "The pencil that you stuck in his eye."

"He was already dead." Kline sighed. "I wanted to make it look like the attack was linked to the robberies…which _weren't_ linked to us."

"What about the old man?" Gibbs asked. "Why kill him?"

"_That_ wasn't me." Kline replied. When Gibbs looked at him skeptically, he threw up his hands and continued. "I swear. I had _nothing_ to do with it."

"But you know who did." Gibbs said…it wasn't a question.

"_After_ it happened," Kline said, "another one of our group approached me and told me what happened."

"Just how many people _are_ there in your…group?" Gibbs asked.

"Six members of my platoon." Kline said flatly. "Myself, Fields, and four others."

"What about last night?" Gibbs asked. "You stabbed the mother and attacked the girl."

"I was going to end it after Fields' death." Kline said. "But after the old man…we realized we had to do a few more…so nobody would think to look our way."

"Let me get this straight." Gibbs said…he was till skeptical about the whole thing. "You expect me to tell Fields' grieving widow that her husband was a member of a gang that robbed houses…and that his membership is what _led_ to his death?"

Kline stared at him for a few seconds.

"Grieving widow, _Hell_." He finally said. "Caroline was the _mastermind_ behind the whole thing."

"Whoa." Tony said as everyone stared in shock through the viewing room window. "Didn't see _that_ one coming."

Evidently, Gibbs didn't see it coming, either. It was one of the few times that he was actually _speechless_ in the interrogation room.

"Would you care to elaborate on that comment?" Gibbs finally said.

Kline laughed.

"She would scope out our targets." Kline told him. "We would all go to Fields' house for a "party"…and would always get loud enough for the neighbors to notice…as an alibi. Then, two of us would slip away, rob the house, and return to the party…where we divided up the bounty, and left."

Gibbs just stared at him for a few seconds, then handed over a piece of paper and pencil.

"I need the names of your men who were in on it." He told Kline. "Did anybody outside of your group know about it?"

"Not that _I_ know of." Kline said as he began writing. Gibbs noticed he was using his left hand. "At least…_I_ didn't tell anyone else."

Gibbs took the piece of paper and put it in his folder.

"For the record." He said as he stood up. "Fields was alive when you stuck the pencil in his eye. Had you just called 911, none of this would have happened."

It was Kline's turn to stare in shock as Gibbs walked out of the room.

"All of Kline's men corroborated his confession." Gibbs briefed Vance. "Caroline Fields has been arrested and is currently waiting for a bail hearing."

"The civilian who was killed?" Vance asked.

"One of the Marines…a Private…confessed to it." Gibbs told him. "The Metro P.D. has taken him into custody."

"Was any of the stolen property recovered?"

"Very little." Gibbs said. "Most of it was sold right after it was taken."

"Good work." Vance told him, then smiled. "Are you going to want to keep any of the interns?"

Gibbs took a deep breath before answering.

"They are all good," He said, "but…"

"Not good enough for Team Gibbs?" Vance finished, smiling.

"I wasn't gonna say _that_." Gibbs laughed. "They are all young. Talented…but inexperienced. Maybe in another five years or so. Also…"

"Yes?" Vance encouraged.

"Two of them are so rich," Gibbs laughed, "I doubt they would _want_ to work for the Government."

"Two?" Vance asked.

"Willis is so rich," Gibbs explained, "he makes _Graham_ look like a pauper."

"I almost forgot." Vance laughed. "Metro P.D. will be making young Laura an Honorary Detective."

"She deserves it." Gibbs nodded. "She not only saved her mother's life, she also helped solve two murders and a string of robberies."

"You want to give Graham something?" Vance asked. "Everything Laura did, she learned in Graham's class."

"She's being considered for a promotion to Third Degree Black Belt." Gibbs laughed. "I don't think she _wants_ any other recognition."

Vance just looked at him curiously.

"You don't make that level without doing things that benefit the community." Gibbs explained. "I think the class falls into that category.

Vance nodded, then gave Gibbs a puzzled look.

"So how did _dad_ get to that level, then?" He asked. "I mean, I'm not trying to speak ill of him, but…"

"He was awarded the Silver Star for valor during the invasion of Afghanistan after 9/11." Gibbs explained. "You don't get that unless you see some _really_ bad stuff. By all accounts, when he returned from there is when his problems began…both legal _and_ personal."

Vance thought about that for a moment.

"Do you think it was PTSD?" He asked.

"I don't want to diagnose him with anything." Gibbs told him. "But it _does_ sound like it."

"We have _got_ to start taking better care of these kids." Vance said, shaking his head.

"Unfortunately, that's not an order that you or I can give." Gibbs said as he walked to the door. "All _we_ can do is make our voices heard by those who _can_."

When Gibbs closed the door, Vance turned and stared out the window.

Thursday, when Abby arrived, she found Jennifer sitting at the table, looking at something.

As she walked up to her, she realized Jennifer was looking at the picture of her father that Abby had given her last year. Jennifer had scanned it and put it on her phone.

"It's hard, sometimes." Abby said softly as she placed her hand on Jennifer's shoulder. "There are days when I miss him so much, it hurts."

When Jennifer looked up, Abby could tell she had been crying.

"There are days that _I_ wonder if he really loved me." Jennifer told her.

"Don't _ever_ doubt that." Abby told her. "His love for _you_ is what kept him going."

"Then why didn't he contact me?" Jennifer asked. "I mean…I know there was the Court Order…but after he found out he was sick, he could have found a way."

Abby, who was fighting back tears _herself_, had to think for a few seconds before answering.

"He…had his demons." She finally said. "I…actually think he was…_scared_ to see you again."

"Scared of _what?_" Jennifer practically screamed.

"That you had forgotten about him." Abby said softly. "That you had moved on with your life."

"_He told you that?_" Jennifer cried.

"Not in so many words." Abby answered soothingly, trying to calm her down. "But…the only time he ever seemed…nervous…was whenever the subject of seeing _you_ came up."

Jennifer turned back to the picture. "There are _sooo_ many things I want to say to him…but I'll never be able to."

"And I can totally sympathize with you on _that_." Abby told her. "I lost my father too, and there are so many things I wish I could tell _him_."

Jennifer didn't answer, so Abby put her arm around her.

"But I have found that, as long as we keep those who are gone alive in _here_," Abby pointed at Jennifer's heart. "then they are not really gone at all."

Jennifer looked up at her.

"And even though they can't _answer_ when we talk to them," Abby continued. "I like to think that they _hear_ every word."

Jennifer threw her arms around Abby and hugged her.

The next day (the last day Jennifer would be there), Abby returned from Ducky's lab with a big smile on her face.

"What's going on?" Jennifer asked nervously.

Abby replied by handing her the piece of paper Ducky had given her. It was the results of the blood tests.

All negative.

"That's a relief." Jennifer sighed.

"Tell me about it." Abby said. "Let's celebrate…dinner will be my treat."

"Ummm…can I take a rain check on that?" Jennifer asked. When Abby just stared at her, she elaborated. "I'm…kind of…having dinner with Brian."

Abby just laughed and nodded.

"_Go get em, tiger._" She thought.

Epilogue 1:

Towards the end of the school year, they were all briefing Gibbs on the current case before leaving for the day when they heard the elevator chime.

Abby looked over to see Jennifer, being escorted by security, who turned and left when Jennifer joined them.

"What are you _doing_ here?" Abby asked as they hugged.

"I want to give everyone invitations." She laughed as she handed them out.

"These look like wedding invitations." Tony observed.

"Brian and I are getting married next month." Jennifer nodded.

"No _way_." Abby said as they hugged. "Congratulations. But…isn't it kind of sudden?"

"_Welllll._" Jennifer blushed. "I guess, in the old days, you would have called it a "shotgun wedding"."

Abby just looked at Jennifer's stomach wide eyed.

"No _way_." She screamed as they hugged again. "Do you know what it is? I mean…I don't want to call a child an "it", but if you don't know the gender, there isn't much else you _could_ call it. I guess you could say…"

"I don't know its gender." Jennifer interrupted, laughing. "We've decided we don't _want_ to know…until the birth."

Abby just hugged her again.

Epilogue 2:

As they were briefing Gibbs, Abby left the elevator and approached them, smiling.

"What are _you_ all smiles about?" Tony asked her.

"McGee, would you be so kind as to open the slide show I sent you?" Abby said.

McGee checked his email, then opened the attachment and placed it on the large screen.

It was a picture of Jennifer holding a baby wrapped in a blue blanket.

"Jason Graham Willis" Abby told them. "Born yesterday morning at 11:26…weighing six pounds, four ounces."

"_Awwwww_." Ziva smiled. "He's so _cute_."

"Aaaand." Abby said. "McGee, please show the next one."

It was a picture of Jennifer holding a baby wrapped in a _pink_ blanket.

"Patricia _Abigail_ Willis." Abby beamed. "Born yesterday morning at 11:_53_…weighing five pounds, eleven ounces."

"_Twins?_" Ziva smiled. "Oh my _God_."

"Unless…there are _more_ pictures." Tony laughed.

"Nope." Abby smiled. "Just the two. I'm going to be sending flowers if anyone wants to contribute…I mean, not that anyone _has_ to, and if you _don't_, I won't think any _less_ of you, but if you _want_ to…"

"Abby!" Gibbs interrupted, holding out the twenty dollar bill that he had pulled out while she was talking. "Here you go."

She smiled as everyone gave her a twenty.

"What do _Brian's_ parents think about the names?" McGee asked. "I hope they aren't upset."

"Oh, no." Abby told him. "Brian has an older brother…and _his_ children are named after _them_."

"Don't I get to contribute for flowers?"

Abby turned to see Vance behind her, holding out a twenty.

"Of _course_." She smiled, then hugged him. "Thank you."

He just replied by clearing his throat.

Abby just smiled and headed back to the elevator.

When she was gone, Vance turned to see everyone staring at him, smiling.

"Don't you have a murder to solve?" He barked, and Tony, Ziva, and McGee hastily returned to their desk.

"You getting soft?" Gibbs laughed.

Vance looked at the picture still showing on the monitor, and Gibbs saw a slight smile, which quickly disappeared as he headed to his office.

Gibbs watched him walk up the stairs and laughed.

The End

7


End file.
